Tetsuya Naito, the former multi-time world champion, recently opened up about his victory in the G1 Climax 33 tournament. Naito secured his third win in the prestigious tournament, guaranteeing him the main event spot in WrestleKingdom 18 pay-per-view next January. In a recent interview with NJPW’s website, Naito shared his thoughts on the tournament and his win.
Reflecting on his victory, Naito expressed his happiness and acknowledged the tough competition he faced in the tournament. He stated, “This is my third win, first in six years. Everybody in this tournament is in it to win it, so I’m obviously happy to win. For me, I’ve always associated the G1 final with the middle of summer and with Ryogoku, so to have that final in Ryogoku, in mid-summer, and of course to have the fans cheering as well, to have that big chant of ‘De Ja Pon!’ felt damn great. I think I had a pretty good summer.”
However, Naito also acknowledged the challenges he faced due to his age and injuries. He admitted that he doesn’t expect to have many more opportunities to be in the main event. Naito said, “That’s a thinker… What with my injuries, and my age as well, I didn’t have, don’t have many more chances left. That’s what I had in mind. I didn’t have the luxury of thinking there’s always next year, or the next year, or five years after that. So I had a lot more on the line I think, and more than my other two wins, I felt that I had to win this time.”
One of the highlights of Naito’s victory was defeating his old rival, Kazuchika Okada, in the tournament finals. Naito spoke about the significance of this win, stating, “To any NJPW wrestler, the G1 Climax final is such an important stage. I have wrestled a whole bunch of singles matches with Okada. When we were Young Lions, we lived in the same room, so to now meet one another in the final, and for me to beat him? My first two G1 wins are definitely ones that left a strong impression on me, but I think this was even more of an important win and a significant win. A big part of that is the fact that I beat that Okada I used to room with years ago.”
If WrestleKingdom 18 were to take place tomorrow, Naito would face his old LIJ comrade SANADA for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship.
For more on Tetsuya Naito’s thoughts on his G1 Climax 33 victory and his defeat of Kazuchika Okada in the tournament finals, you can read the full interview on NJPW’s website.
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